Samantha: 110 Months, Week 2
Aedan: 76 Months, Week 4
Owen: 34 Months, Week 2
With this being the last week before we go on our big trip to visit friends and family in the Midwest, we had a lot going on to wrap things up and get ready, and also several things we planned to do with the kids.
It was a nice, sunny, warm day on Sunday afternoon, so once Owen woke up from his nap, we decided to head to the beach to go swimming together. The kids had fun playing in the water with Daddy, and I captured a few pictures. I went swimming with the kids as well, but Ben and I take turns going in the water so that one of us can be up with our little peanut, who is usually fast asleep in her car seat. Life was feeling pretty crazy, busy, hard, and overwhelming, and as I sat there and watched Ben play and have fun with the kids, and as I looked around at the beautiful place we are privileged to in, I felt glad that we live by Harvey's Lake where we can spend time in the sun and water, just playing and spending time together as a family. Sunset Beach is great, and I'm glad we decided to get a membership. We will definitely get one next year as well.
Unfortunately, our practice of exercising more consistently kind of went out the window once we got our little peanut at the beginning of July. However, we have started to try getting back into waking up early to go running on the road that goes around the lake. Ben is much better at getting up in the morning than I am. (I have always been a night owl, and my bed just feels so much extra comfortable in the morning. I am terrible at hitting the snooze button over and over again.) Anyways, here are some great pictures Ben took of the lake and sun rising over the mountains from Monday morning during his run.
We signed Samantha and Aedan up for Back Mountain Soccer Camp that took place Monday, Tuesday, and Wednesday from 9:00-12:00. With Little League being cancelled, I saw this as an opportunity for them to try something different and see if maybe they would like to try soccer for the fall season. Samantha played soccer back when she was a 4 year old, and she just kind of stood in the field and didn't care too much to run or try to get the ball. Aedan had never played soccer, so we wondered how they would like it, and I figured going to this soccer camp would be a nice thing to do when everything else had been cancelled this summer.
It was a little hectic getting all four kids ready and out of the house to get them to the soccer fields by 9:00, especially because we weren't sure where they should go. Well, as I was getting all the kids out of the van, the leader of our foster parent support group drove by and asked if she could help in anyway, and I said yes. She stayed at the van with Owen and our little peanut while I took Samantha and Aedan to the correct field. It was nice not having to drag the little ones out of the car, just to take them back a few minutes later to buckle them back up. I was grateful for this small act of kindness and for seeing my need for help and asking.
My job for the morning was taking Owen and our little peanut grocery shopping. We did a grocery pick up order, and then I just had to run into the store for a few random things, so it didn't take too long. This was the first time I have let Owen come in the store with me since the pandemic started back in March, and he was actually really excited to go shopping with me again and to ride in the big blue cart with our little peanut. Shopping went well, but I didn't have enough time to drive back home and unload any groceries before I had to be back to pick Samantha and Aedan up from soccer camp at 12:00, so I decided to just drive straight to the field, even though I was a little early, and it was a good thing because they ended practice earlier because it was so hot and the kids were tired. So then it was 12:00 and I was just then on my way home with a hungry baby and a trunk full of groceries. However, I had three kids to help me when I got home, so Samantha fed our little peanut while the boys helped unload the groceries, and I started putting everything away. Then, it was time to get lunch around for everyone and get the two little ones down for naps. Whew, what a busy morning! (Here are some pictures of our little peanut's first trip to the store, and Owen's first time since the pandemic.)
With all the commotion of getting home later, putting groceries away, and eating a late lunch, Owen got down for his nap later than I like, not falling asleep until almost 2:45. However, I couldn't resist taking these pictures of him cuddled up in my lap, especially because he fell asleep sweetly holding on to my fingers. I love this boy and how cuddly is. It makes my heart so happy to still have these precious moments with him.
In getting ready for our upcoming trip, we decided we would try to have Owen sleep on a special air mattress rather than a pack and play. He was getting too big for the pack and play the last time we used it, so we knew it was time. However, I wanted to make sure that he could sleep in it well without falling out a lot or getting up constantly, since he is used to sleeping in a crib. This air mattress was perfect for him, and it had raised sides so he wouldn't roll off as easily. So on Monday night, we decided to put it on the floor in Samantha's and Aedan's room for him to try it out and also have a fun sleepover with his big brother and sister. Everyone was super excited about it, so we put them all to bed with Owen's monitor in the room so we could keep tabs on how he was doing, and decided to see how it would go. Here are some pictures of everyone cuddled up in bed, ready to sleep.
Owen really did pretty well. I think we only had to go back in the room once to tell him to be quiet, settle down, and go to sleep. They said he did get up and walk around some in the morning once he woke up and the bunny clock hadn't changed, but overall, it was good, and we decided that the mattress would work well for our trip.
Owen and our little peanut were due for baths, so I decided to just give them a bath together on Tuesday morning. Owen thought it was really cool to be in the bathtub with her, and he enjoyed sitting down near the drain where it was warmer, and near the faucet so he could play in the water as well. With Samantha and Aedan at soccer camp from 9-12, our morning was a little more relaxed with just the two little kids.
Wednesday was a busy day as it was the day we had a newborn photo session scheduled for our little peanut, her mom, and our family. I got Owen down for a an earlier nap so that way we could leave on time for the photo session and didn't have to wake him up too much. Here he is fast asleep in my lap. I love how he is all snuggled up with blankie.
Once Samantha and Aedan got home from soccer camp, we got them showered and bathed so they would look clean for our pictures. I picked out our outfits the night before so that way they would coordinate. Our photographer, Jordyn, from Jordyn Rae Photography, did an awesome job capturing some wonderful pictures for us. I couldn't believe how beautiful they turned out. Now, I just need to make sure I actually print some and hang them up in our house, as we still have pictures from our photo shoot two years ago in Sault Ste. Marie hung up. Here are some pictures she captured of our family. Even though Owen wasn't in the mood to smile for the camera much, we got some pictures that really turned out well. I included all of the edited ones that she sent me, because, why not?
I really like these outdoor pictures of our family, especially with Samantha leaning over to cuddle with Owen. I think this will definitely be one that I print.
I really like these pictures of the three kids together. One of these will definitely be printed out and framed. Our three kids are so adorable. I look at them and feel so proud to be their mom.
I absolutely love these pictures of Aedan with his arm wrapped around Owen. We were trying to cheer him up and get him interested in smiling for the pictures again, and Aedan was doing a good job of encouraging him. I think one of the best parts of the kids being home from school for this quarantine, has been seeing the bond between Aedan and Owen grow. They have been playing a lot more together, and Aedan has definitely stepped up more into his role as big brother. What you see in these pictures just melts my heart. I hope our kids are always there for each other.
This is a pretty good picture of our family, I just wish that it was in color instead.
I also really like this next picture, even though Samantha looks a little squeezed between Daddy and me.
In these next few pictures, you can tell the boys, especially Aedan, were reaching their limit with posing for pictures.
I wasn't sure how this shot would turn out when Jordyn first suggested we stand like this, but I really like it. I love that our three kids are standing in the foreground, all wrapped up together, while Ben and I stand in the background and look on at them.
This picture is pretty great, too! I love Samantha's genuine smile, Aedan leaning in to kiss Owen, and Owen smirking that shows off his cute dimples.
And here's another great family shot. It will be so hard to choose which ones to print off and hang up. I love how close we all are in this picture, showing how close of a bond our family has.
Now I will include some of the pictures of our little peanut. Her mom brought several outfits for her to wear for the photo shoot, so I kind of let her take charge of that. Our little peanut slept for most of the photo sheet, but she was easygoing, and Jordyn got some really cute shots of her that almost look like she's grinning, which of course you can't see because I have to block out her face due to confidentiality. She is a very cute, sweet little baby.
We got these pictures done on July 29th, the day she turned one month old.
This is a great picture of Ben holding our little peanut. (I wish I would have gotten one with her by myself as well.)
Here's my handsome 6-year-old, lounging casually on the sofa. He has a great smile in this picture.
Aedan isn't quite as confident in how to hold our little peanut, and doesn't pick her up or feed her as much as Samantha does, but he is so sweet and gentle with her, as you can see in the second picture when he leans in to give her a kiss on the forehead.
Samantha is a natural with babies, and she absolutely adores our little peanut. She loves to hold her and to give her a bottle. Samantha said she was excited to have her because she always wanted to have a little sister. She definitely is a huge helper for us in caring for our little peanut, and I appreciate all her thoughtfulness.
I love this little look and smile Samantha is giving in this picture. My beautiful daughter is growing up so fast. Do you see how long her hair is? She is still growing it out so that she can donate it.
We figured Owen was a little too young to hold our little peanut by himself, so we got all three of them back on the sofa to get some pictures of all the kids with our little peanut. As you can tell, Owen was not in the mood to smile for any pictures, but Samantha did a good job of engaging both of her brothers as you can see in the next few pictures when they are all looking down at our little peanut.
To end the photo shoot, we got some shots of our whole family, including our little peanut....
...and then some of just Ben, me, and her.
Here are a couple pictures we took ourselves. There were little bees flying around in the long grass, and one of them stung Owen on the back of the leg, so after comforting him for awhile myself, Samantha sat down next to him to help him calm down. She's such a loving and caring big sister.
After our photo shoot, we offered to go out for ice cream with our family, our little peanut, and her birth mom. Then, we came back home to have a little bit of leftovers for dinner before getting everyone ready for bed. It was my turn to read to Samantha, and our little peanut was being a little fussy, so I tried out the sling wrap that my friend Grade loaned me. She got cozy inside of it pretty quickly and fell fast asleep against my chest, giving me both of my hands free so I could hold Samantha's Kindle and read Harry Potter to her.
Whoever reads to Samantha is the one who puts Owen to bed, and he was being silly with me again that night, making funny faces in his bed, and asking me to take a pictures of it.
Thursday was a busy day as we had our little peanut's case worker to our house for a visit that morning, and we were trying to finish up laundry and pack everything up so that we could leave first thing in the morning on Friday. Ben and I always make a list of everything we need to pack, which helps, but it's quite the process getting six people packed up for a two week trip away from home. Plus, our little peanut had a visit that evening, so when we picked her up, we took advantage of the chance to stop and get food on the way home at the restaurant near us that serves gyros. The owner was really kind to the kids and even brought out ice cream for all of us. It was nice going out to eat and not having to worry about cleaning up our counters, table, or kitchen. I think this was the first time we ate out at a restaurant and sat inside with the kids since the stay-at-home order started.
Friday, July 31st was the day we left for our Tour of the Midwest. I left a little after 8:00 to take our little peanut down to our friends in Wilkes-Barre who were going to watch her for us while we were out of town. Ben and I did a really good job of having pretty much everything packed up and ready to be loaded in the van on Friday morning, so while I drove our little peanut down and then drove back up, Ben worked on packing up the car, trying to figure out how to fit all our stuff and the big bin and bags that we needed to bring to Aunt Christy. Ben sent me these two pictures of where to put the bin. We ended up putting it in the middle, with Izzy's bed on top, and that's how it worked the best.
As soon as I got back home, I went to the bathroom, checked the house one more time, and we were off. We decided to take the turnpike route on the way out to Indiana, and the kids really did pretty well on the nine hour trip. We stopped for lunch, and then we declared it was nap time/quiet time. Normally, Owen gives us a harder time falling asleep in the car, but this time we gave him Monkey and Blankie to cuddle with, and he resisted falling asleep much less.
This is what makes these long trips doable. We have just trained our kids that this is what afternoons look like in our van. We moved Owen to the back seat and Samantha to the front seat for this trip so that way the boys would have more of a chance to play together, Samantha would be able to read undisturbed, and then when it's afternoon nap time, the boys have the quiet back seat to fall asleep in. It's never hard to get Aedan to fall asleep in the car in the afternoon. Quiet trips in the afternoon make the ride much more bearable.
The exciting event of the day was that Owen kept his diaper dry all day and was asking for M&Ms from the potty fairy. We have been starting to have him use the potty more over the last week or so, and he gets two M&Ms if he pees and four M&Ms if he poops. He has done really well with it, and has gone pee in the potty quite a bit. However, we were surprised that he kept his diaper dry all day in the van on our trip, and every time we stopped he would gladly sit on the potty and went every time, even though we didn't have his special potty seat with us. I was so proud of him, and I was hoping this would lead to an easier time potty training him.
We arrived in Upland around 7:50, which was the best we could do since we left later that morning after dropping our little peanut off. The reason we stopped in Upland first was because Ema and Papa agreed to keep Izzy for us while we were gone on our trip so that way we didn't have to pay for her to be boarded the whole time, and we just felt like that was too long anyways.
Ben and I worked hard on getting the things we needed unloaded and getting everyone set up for bed. Alaina was in Upland as well, which the kids were excited about. Samantha, Aedan, and Alaina all wanted to sleep in a room together, so we figured we would let them try it that night. (Although I think I remember Aedan deciding to sleep with Ema and Papa. I can't quite recall.) However, Samantha came out of the room crying at almost 10:00 because she couldn't sleep with Alaina's radio and bright night light on. She said she had a headache, probably because she was so overtired, so we gave her medicine, turned off the radio and nightlight, and sent her back to bed. After that night we decided that when we come back to Upland for four nights, that we would just have Samantha and Aedan share a room together, since they are more used to that and don't bother each other much anymore. It's important for everyone to get a good sleep so they can be in good moods and be respectful.
Saturday morning we loaded everything back up in the car and hit the road to Verona, Wisconsin to visit our friends Brad, Melissa, Madeline, and Matthew Moser. With stopping for lunch, we didn't arrive there until about 3:45, and even though all the kids were tired, Samantha refused to sleep in the car, and the boys didn't sleep for very long. However, they were really excited to see their new house and to start playing with all the fun and different toys. I love visiting the Mosers because they are so hospitable and easygoing. We were able to talk and catch up with each other while our kids happily played together, and it was fun watching Owen and Matthew establish more of a bond and enjoy playing together more than they did last time.
All the kids, except Owen who we planned to sleep in his own room on his special air mattress, wanted to share a room that night, and we had Aedan set up on the trundle bed, but we decided Samantha should sleep in a separate room by herself. Since she was up until 10:00 the night before in Upland, she was super crabby and tired that first night in Verona. I knew she would have a hard time sleeping in a different room with three other people, so even though she was really mad at me for making her sleep in a different place, I knew it would be better for everyone in the end if she just got a good night's sleep. Here is Melissa reading the four younger kids a bedtime story, while Samantha got her own reading time. It was a great day, but we were ready for the kids to go to bed so we could have some uninterrupted adult conversation.
(Blog about July 26-August 1, 2020)
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